“Very well,” you reply, taking a sip of lager. “I’ll arrange for us to leave in the morning.”
The conversation continues, and soon the pretzels arrive. They’re a unique bread, twisted into small loops. You eat, drink, and talk for quite some time. Soon, though, your party leaves the beer hall, heading back out into the night. You visit a few small shops, surprisingly still open at this hour, and then return to Schloss Tegel.
Keisuke informs the other members of the mission of your travel plans, and you all retire for the night shortly afterward. The morning comes, and with it, unseasonably warm weather. As you all pile into the carriages and head for the train station, you note that the icicles hanging from the eaves of the manor have begun to melt in the morning sun.
“I’ve taken the liberty of reading into this Mr. Krupp,” Sato begins as the carriage leaves the manor. “He’s certainly a strange one.”
“Strange how?” You raise an eyebrow.
“His system of leadership is based in some sort of morality,” he explains. “He seems to see himself as a kind of patriarch to his workmen.” He leans back, smirking. “Like a daimyo of steel, so to speak.”
“You think he’ll be difficult to work with?”
Sato shakes his head. “The man has dealings with militaries from all over Europe. At the end of the day, his morals don’t override his profits, from what I can tell.”
Zorn, who sits in the carriage with you, nods. “He actually refused a noble title from the King last year. Seemed to think it would cause tension within his business dealings.” The German leans forward. “He’s got an ambitious streak, though. Doesn’t think highly of reformers or liberal government. Perhaps he sees Japan as a preferable society to what Europe is becoming.”
You look over at Beretta, who has been silent since you motioned for him to join you in the carriage. He’s clearly thinking about something. You decide to pick his brain a bit. “So, are you interested in seeing Krupp’s operation?”
The young Italian rubs his chin. “I took a look at the field guns you bought from Spandau,” he finally says. “They seem far more robust than the Armstrong guns from the British. If we can set up a foundry and machine shop back in Japan, I think we can more readily manufacture them as well.” He pauses, thinking. “Though I worry about having too much diversity in our arsenal…”
>”Agreed. We should work on standardizing our arms.”
>”Right now, we need to take what we can get, even if it means a variety of different weapons.”
>”No other army in Japan is standardized, I doubt it will be a serious concern in the short-term.”
>Write-in.
